Wind power is considered one of the cleanest, most environmentally friendly energy sources presently available, and wind turbines have gained increased attention in this regard. A modern wind turbine typically includes a tower, generator, gearbox, nacelle, and one or more rotor blades. The rotor blades capture kinetic energy from wind using known foil principles and transmit the kinetic energy through rotational energy to turn a shaft coupling the rotor blades to a gearbox, or if a gearbox is not used, directly to the generator. The generator then converts the mechanical energy to electrical energy that may be deployed to a utility grid.
Over time, the various wind turbine components may become worn and/or damaged due to loads and forces from the wind acting on the wind turbine. Unfortunately, repair of such components often requires the wind turbine components to be removed from atop the nacelle and transported to a manufacturing facility, which can be very time-consuming and labor intensive. Even still, if such repairs are made uptower, the nacelle has minimal space and/or working surfaces therein, thereby making it difficult for personnel to complete the needed tasks. Often, external cranes are needed to perform maintenance and repair on wind turbine components at the top of the tower. However, the use of such external cranes can increase costs associated with the aforementioned repair/replacement procedures.
Some repair and servicing operations use an external platform to provide a working space for the technicians. More specifically, such platforms can be used to provide safe access to areas of a wind turbine that may require servicing, maintenance, and/or inspection. Due to the height of wind turbine towers, safely accessing such working platforms and safety precautions such as fall protection are concerns. Some wind turbine nacelles do not have external hatches on the sides thereof, but rather, have hatches on their roofs. As such, safely accessing the side-mounted working platform from the nacelle roof can create a challenge.
Accordingly, the present disclosure is directed to an external ladder assembly mountable to the roof of the nacelle that provides access to working platforms for personnel during service, maintenance, and/or inspection procedures.